Breath alcohol legislation in The Netherlands

Abstract

In October 1987 the legislation on driving under the influence of alcohol has been changed thoroughly in The Netherlands. From that date breath analysis was introduced to obtain legal evidence for prosecuting drunken drivers. For financial and logistic reasons a transitional period of two years was allowed which means that from October 1989 breath analysis was completely introduced. One of the features of this legislation is that the suspect has no choice between breath--or blood analyses. The blood test will only be used if there is a technical or medical reason which prevents that a breath sample is collected. The legal limit is set at 220 micrograms/litre, which is equivalent to the Dutch blood alcohol limit of 0.5 mg/ml at a assumed blood/breath ratio of 2300. The features of the legislation are described; the technical requirements are stressed.